Hay-loader



'4 Sheets-Sheet l. S. FERGUSON.

HAY LOADER.

(No Model.)

nl y 1f asses (No Model.) 4 Sheets--Sheet 2.

S. FERGUSON.

HAY LOADER.

Pate'nted Apr. 27

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(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 3.

S. FERGUSON. HAY LOADER.

No. 581,403. Patented Apr. 27, 1897. lll' I j lgegn /Sam ueZ-z'fwsanf Wilxysses Tui Noms PETERS co. Puoaurus.. wAsmnmon, D. c,

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

S. FERGUSON.

HAY LOADER.

No. 581,403. Patented Apr. 27., 1897.:

Nrrnn rus trice.

HAY-LOADER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 581,403, dated April 27, 1897.

Application led March l, 1895.

To all whom, it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, SAMUEL FERGUSON, ka citizen of the United States, residing at Cedar Rapids, in the county of Linn and State of Iowa, have invented a new and useful Hay- Loader, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to hay-loaders of the class in which the hayis raked from the swath, carried upward and forward, and deposited in a preceding vehicle; and it has for its objects to simplify, improve, and strengthen the construction of machines employed for this purpose; to provide a novel form of rake for maintaining an even pressure of the teeth and for conforming to irregularities in the surface of the soil traversed; to provide improved means for imparting motion to the carrier-apron to preserve uniformity of strain in the chains and in the intermediate portion of the apron; to provide an improved construction of rake teeth whereby they are adapted to yield upon encountering an obstacle to prevent breakage to provide an improved construction of hood for maintaining the raked hay in contact with the picker-shafts until it has been engaged by the spurs of the carrier-aprons, and, furthermore, to provide improved means for Amounting the pickershafts whereby they are adapted to yield upon encountering an obstacle or hummock, and whereby said shafts may be detached independently for repair or replacement when broken or injured.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will appear in the following description, and the novel features thereof will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a front view of a hay-loader constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical central section of the same, showing its application to a vehicle, the device which is employed for elevatingthe front end of the loader to detach the same from the rear end of the vehicle and support said front end of the hay-loader after the removal of the vehicle being shown in operative position. Fig. 3 is a detail side view of a portion of the machine to show the g relative positions of the supporting-wheels, cylinder-head, casting, rake, and hood mech- Serial No. 540,173. (No model.)

anisins. Fig. 4 is a partial side view of the upper portion of the carrier-frame to show the means for adjusting the upper carrierroller and the attachment of the upper ends of the braces. Fig. 5 is an end view of the cylinder and the adjacent portion of a carrier-chain. Fig. 6 is a detail viewin perspective of a port-ion of the same. Fig. 7 is a detail longitudinal section of one end of the cylinder and the contiguous portions of the picker-shafts. Fig. 8 is a detail view in perspective of the rake,includin g the hood. Fig. 9 is a front view of the rake-frame, showing the terminal sections thereof elevated or deflected from the plane of the intermediate section. Fig. l0 is a detail transverse section of the rake. Fig. 11 is a similar View showing a slightly-modified form of rake-tooth. Fig. 12 is a detail perspective view of a rake; tooth constructed as shown in Fig. 10. Fig. 13 is a perspective view of one end of a rake, showing modified means for supporting the same. Fig. 14 is a detail view of the means for operating the adjustable standard which supports the front end of the loader when the vehicle is withdrawn. Fig. 15 is a detail view Yshowing the means for operating the pickershafts. Fig. 16 is a detail view in perspective of the upper end of the standard and contiguous parts. Fig. 17 is a plan view of a portion of the horizontal frame.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

1 designates the main axle, carrying the loose drive-wheels 2, which are connected with the axle to communicate forward motion thereto by means of clutches of the ordinary construction, and loosely journaled upon the axle adjacent to the drive-wheels are wheellike frame-castings 8, provided at their upper sides with peripheral u pstanding ears 4., which form means of attachment to the rear ends of the horizontal frame-bars 5. These framebars are arranged parallel with each other at their rear ends and extend forward to a point approximately midway between the castings and a vertical standard 6, where they are spliced by means of couplings 7 to the rear ends of the forwardly-convergent horizontal brace-bars 8, said brace-'bars being connected securely at their front ends by means of up- IOC per and lower socket-plates 9, provided in common with the front ends of said bracebars with vertical sockets 10 for the reception of the standard G. Pivotally attached by means of a bolt 11 to one of the socket-plates 9 is a coupling-loop 12 for engagement with a hook 13 on the rear end of a vehicle, which is indicated at 14.

Stepped at their lower rear ends upon the rear ends of the side bars 5 are the upwardly and forwardly inclined side bars 15 of the carrier-frame,the attachment of the lower ends of said bars being accomplished by means of an extension of one of the ears 4, which is bolted to the lower end of each of said bars. These side bars are connected near their upper and lower ends by cross-bars 17 and 18, and between these cross-bars are arranged the longitudinal guide-bars 19, the upper surfacesl of which are disposed in the plane of the upper surfaces of the side bars l5. The upper cross-bar 17 is provided with a truss-brace 20.

Supported by the side bars 15 of the carrierframe are the side boards 2l, which are arranged approximately flush with the outer edges of the side bars and are provided withinwardly-projecting ledges 22 beyond the inner surfaces of the side boards for the support of carrier-chains 23, which form the side members of the carrier-apron 24, said guide-bars 19 serving to support the intermediate portions of the apron. The upper front end of the carrier-frame is held in proper position in relation to the horizontal frame, comprising the side bars 5 and braces 3, by the downwardly and forwardly convergent brace-rods 25, which are attached at their upper ends to the front elevated portion of the carrier-frame. The lower ends of these brace-rods are attached to the upper socket-plate 9.

The means for extending1 and applying power to the standard G in order to elevate the front end of the frame of the holder sufficiently to disen gage the coupling-loop 12 from the hook 13 comprise a cable 26, attached at one end to a staple 27 on the socket-plate 9, and passing over the upper guide-pulley 23, carried by the standard and under a stationary guide-pulley 29 on said socket-plate at the opposite side of the standard, the other extremity of said cable being attached to a drum 30, which may be arranged at any convenient point on the frame-as, forinstance, at the upper end of one of the side beams. This drum forms a part of a windlass having a crank 31 and a ratchet mechanism of any ordinary construction (not shown) for maintaining it at the desired adjustment, whereby the standard may be held at the necessary extension to support the front end of the holder in its proper position, or may be extended to elevate said front end of the holder to disengage the coupling-loop 12 from the hook 13. This standard carries a sprin g-latch 32 for engagement with the lower socket-plate when the frame of the holder has been elevated to the point necessary to disengage the coupling-loop from the hook on the vehicle, said latch having an actuating-spring 33 and being connected to a cord 34, which extends upward to within reach of an operator on the vehicle. Said cord is preferably attached to an arm 35 of a pivotal operating-crank 3G, which is pivoted near the upper end of the standard, said crank being arranged in operative relation with a knob 37, with which it may be engaged to secure the latch in its operative position.

The roller 38, arranged at the upper end of the carrier-frame for supporting the carrierapron, is journaled in bearing blocks 39, mounted in slotted guides 40, depending from the side-beams of the carrier-frame, and adjusting-bolts 41 are arranged in operative relation with said bearings to adjust the latter to take up slack in the carrier-apron. The lower or inoperative side of the carrier-apron is supported by means of a guide 42, consisting of longitudinal bars 43, connected near their front ends by means of a cross-bar 44 and attached at their rear lower ends to a transverse rod 45, which is secured at its extremities in suitable bearings 4G near the angle-irons 7. Said longitudinal bars 43 of the guide are extended and terminate in curved guide-fin gers 47 to prevent the apron from engaging and being stopped thereby, the front end of the guide being supported by an approximately vertical rod 48, which extends downward to the upper socket-plate 9. Side braces 49 extend from the axle 1 at points near the castings 3 to intermediate parts of the side beams of the carrier-frame.

The cylinder-heads 50 are fixed to the main shaft contiguous to the inner sides of the frame-castings 3, and are provided in their rims with spaced bearings 51, in which are mounted the spindles 52 of the picker-shafts 53, said spindles extending beyond the outer surfaces of the cylinder-heads and being provided with wings or lugs54 to travel in ways or guides formed in the inner sides of the frainecastings. These guides, which are shown at 55, are irregular in construction, being provided at the top with an offset or cam-shaped portion 5G, adapted to receive the wings or lugs of the picker-shafts and allow the latter to turn sufficiently to depress the picker-teeth 57 to assume positions approximately in the plane of the carrier-apron, all as clearly set forth in my former patent, No. 488,732, granted on the 27th day of December, 1892.

The body portions of the picker-shafts are capable of transverse movement independently of their spindles to allow the same to yield upon encountering obstacles, and this flexibility or yielding quality of the body portions of the shafts is secured by providing said spindles with crank-arms 5S, terminating in ears 59, which support guide-stems 60, upon which are tted to slide the extremities of said body portions of the picker-shafts, the latter being terminally notched, as shown at IOO IIO

61, to fit uponl the crank-arms. Interposed between the body portions of the pickershafts and the ears 59 and `coiled upon the guide-stems 60 are return-springs 62, which normally hold the picker-shafts in operative position, suitable keys 63 being iitted in transverse perforations in the outer extremities of the guide-stems to prevent the displacement of the body portions of the shafts.

The exterior surfaces of the rims of the cylinder-heads are polygonal to provide a series of flat faces 64 for the bearing of the carrierchains 23, whereby motion may be communicated from the cylinder-heads to said chains without the use of spurs or teeth on the cylinder-heads for engaging the links of the chain, the objection to the latter construction residing in the fact that downward pressure upon the intermediate portions of the carrierapron is liable in practice to cause inward deflection of the intermediate portions of the chains, and hence disalinement of the chains with the teeth and consequent irregularity of operation.

In order to prevent inward deflection ofthe chains at points contiguous to the cylinderheads, I employ upstanding wings or projections 65 on the peripheries of the cylinderheads approximately flush with the inner surfaces thereof, said wings or projections being provided with seats or notches 66 for the reception of the transverse members 67 of the carrier-apron. These transverse members are provided with terminal hooks 68 to engage the links of the carrier-chains 23, and the intervals between the seats or notches are such as to agree with those between the transverse members of the apron, whereby vsaid transverse members assist the flat surfaces ofthe rims of the cylinder-heads in communicating motion from such cylinder-heads to the carrier. The disposition of these wings or projections 65 in contact with the inner sides of the carrier-chains has the effect of guiding the chains and thus maintaining the parts sufliciently in alinement `to prevent interference with the operation of the mechanism.

In connection with the above-described construction I employ a trailing or following rake, of flexible or yielding construction, which is arranged in such a position with relation to the cylinder and carrier as to gather the hay and present it to the carrier, but which is independently supported in order that it may adapt itself to irregularities in the surface traversed, and thus avoid imperfection in the gatheringoperation. Withthisobjectinview the frame of the rake is constructed of an intermediate section or member 69 and duplicate terminal members 70, which are pivotally connected at their inner ends to the intermediate section and are adapted to swing in vertical planes independently thereof.

The intermediate or central section is supported by means of a ground-wheel 7l and the extremities of the terminal sections by means of similar ground-wheels 72, said intermediate section being extended rearwardly, as shown at 7 3, and being provided with supporting-wheels 74C to give the necessary steadiness to the structure and also to provide for bracing the intermediate portion -of the rakeframe through the tension-rods 75. These tension-rods are attached at their outer extremities,. as shown at 76, to the ends of the terminal sections of the frame and are pivotally or loosely connected at their inner ends, as shown at 77, to the rear end of the extension 73, whereby backward deflection of the intermediate portion of the rake is prevented. The detail construction of this rake-frame may be varied without departing from the spirit of my invention, but in the construction illustrated in the drawings the same comprises parallel front and rear bars 78 and 79, connected by side bars S0 and 8l, the latter being located at the inner ends of the terminal sections and parallel with the similar side bars 82 of the intermediate or central frame, said side bars 82 being extended in rear of the line of the rear bars 79 to form the extension 7 3. In the construction illustrated in the drawings the central or intermediate section occupies but a small portion of the entire length of the rake, only sufcient to support two of the rake-teeth S3, but it will be understood that this detail may be varied to provide for said section carrying any desired number of teeth. The connection between the rake-frame and the frame-castings is securedv by means of yokes S6, secured to the front bars of the terminal sections of said rake-frame,connecting rods 85, provided at their rear ends with clevises 84E to engage notches 87 in said yokes, a series of these notches being provided to allow vertical adjustment of the clevises, and vertical bars SS, supported by the spokes of the frame-castings and provided with series of perforations 89 for engagement by transverse pins or bolts on the'front ends of the connecting-rods S5. By means of the series of perforations 89 and-the notches S7 in the yokes any desired pressure may be exerted upon the front portion of the rake-frame to cause the desired downward pressure of the rake-teeth.

The rake-teeth are fixed to the rake-frame by means of fastening-loops90, which are arranged upon the upper surfaces of the front and rear bars of said frame, together with vertical bolts 91, which engage shanks 92 of the teeth and also secure the front ends of' said loops. The teeth are constructed of spring wire or rod and comprise the downwardly and forwardly curved tongue 93 and a spring-coil 94, which is interposed between said tongue and the shank 92, the latter being doubled upon itself or looped to form an eye 95,through which said securing-bolt 91 extends, this eye being disposed in contact with the lower surface of the front bar of the rake-frame. It is necessary in a machine of the class to which this invention belongs to employ means for holding the hay in contactwith the cylinder IOO for engagement by the carrier-apron, and as it is desirable to provide as light a structure as possible I employ a hood comprising upward-curved extensions 9G of t-he rake-teeth, which follow the curvature of the cylinder to a point above the main axle.

The rake-tooth, as above described, consisting of a tongue 93, a coil 94, alooped shank 92, which is doubled upon itself to form the eye 95, and the are-shaped extension 0G, is preferably constructed of a single continuous blank of wire with a coil 97 interposed between the shank and said extension 9G in order to give su fcient elasticity to this part, and as the tonguey 93 inclines forward but slightly toward its lower end the contact of its lower end with an obstacle will not cause depression or downward movement sufficiently to engage the tooth in the ground, but will swing said lower end rearwardly under the rake-frame and thus allow it to pass over the obstacle without injury. In order, however, to add still further `to the efficiency of the tooth, I `preferably employ a guard-finger 9S, formed as an extension of the tongue 93, and rising in advance thereof in an arc constructed on a longer radius and extending above the upper end of said tongue. The upper extremity of this guard-iin ger is thus disposed close to the plane of the cylinder, and the hay as it aseends and passes between the cylinder and the extremity oi' the guardinger by pressing this upper end to the rear has a tendency to advance the lower end of the tongue or slightly stiffen the tooth.

The point of connection of the tongue 93 with the guard-finger i's rounded, as shown at 99, to prevent catching in the surface of the soil.

In Fig. ll Ihave shown the rake-tooth without the guard-linger, the construction, however, being identical with that shown in Fig. l() with this exception.

In Fig. 13 I have shown a portion of a rakeframe provided with slightly different supporting devices, the same consisting of runners 100, which are connected at their front ends to the extremities of the frame and are free at their rear ends to give the necessary resilience of motion.

The operation of the above-described mechanism will be readily understood from the foregoing description, and it will be obvious that the use of an independently-supported or trailing rake will provide for the automatic adjustment thereof to suit irregularities in the surface traversed, and the construction of the rake-teeth with the integral arc-shaped arms 9G, which combine to form the hood for guiding the hay around the cylinder, is such as to secure lightness and strength with the necessary resilience of the parts to prevent breakage or injury upon encountering obstacles.

IV hen the vehicle which is employed to support the front end of the loader during operation is full and it is desired to detach the same, the standard is lowered to the position shown in Fig. 2, and by the operation of the windlass is depressed to elevate the loaderframe and disengage the coupling-link from the hook 13. The front end of the loaderframe is then supported by the standard until the return of the vehicle, when the latch 32 may be withdrawn from engagement with the lower socket-plate 9 to allow the depression of the coupling-pin sufficiently to engage the hook on the vehicle.

The object in employing a rake-frame comprising pivotally-connected intermediate and terminal sections is to allow the engaging extremities of the rake-teeth to follow irregularities ot' the surface of the soil traversed, a single supporting wheel or roller on the intermediate section serving to guide the inner ends of both terminal sections; but in addition to this it is obvious that by arranging a tooth upon the intermediate section in front of the supporting wheel or roller mounted thereon any hay or other material which is being raked will be caught by said tooth when the central wheel or roller is traversing and ruiming parallel with the crest of a ridge. Furthermore, by employing a plurality of sections greater than two, and providing each sect-ion with an independent supporting device, the adjustment of the rake-frame to suit the inequalities in the surface of the soil is increased. In any iiexible rake-frame of the class described, even if only two sections are employed, three supporting devices, such as wheels or rollers, would be necessary to carry the outer and inner extremities of the scctions, and hence with the same number of supporting devices a frame comprising a pluralityof sections greater than two maybe employed, and thus increased ilexibility of the frame is insured.

It is obvious that in practice various changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim is- 1. A hay-rake having a sectional frame comprising terminal and intermediate tooth-bearing sections hinged together at theircontiguons extremities to swing in a vertical plane, the terminal sections being provided at their outer ends with supporting devices and the intermediate section being provided with a central supporting device to adapt it to rock laterally, said intermediate section also being extended in rear of the terminal sections and provided with additional supporting devices to prevent forward and rearward tilting movement, substantially as specified.

2. A hay-rake having a sectional frame comprising terminal and intermediate tooth-bearing sections hinged together at their contiguous extremities to swing in a vertical plane, and provided, respectively, with supporting devices arranged approximately in transverse alinenient in rear of the plane of the teeth, and the intermediate section being provided, in rear 0f the plane of said supporting devices, with additional supporting devices to prevent forward and rearward tilting movement, substantially as specified.

In a hay-loader, the combination with picker and carrier mechanisms, of a trailing rake of sectional construction comprising an intermediate section and terminal sections pivotally connected to the intermediate section, each section having parallel front and rear bars connected at their extremities by side bars, supporting-wheels arranged at the outer extremities of the terminal sections and approximately in alinem ent with the rear bars thereof, a supporting wheel arranged centrally in the intermediate section, loops 90 spanning the interval between the front and rear bars and secured to said bars with their front ends projecting beyond the front bar, and rake 'teeth provided with shanks arranged in contact with the front sides of the front bars and engaged by said projecting extrenities of the loops, substantially as speciet. In a hay-loader, the combination with picker and carrier mechanisms, of a rake having a frame, and rake-teeth supported by said frame, each tooth being constructed of a single wire blank and comprising a shank, a tongue depending from the shank and connected thereto by means of an interposed spring-coil, and an uprising arc-shaped guiderod connected with the shank by means of an interposed spring-coil and adapted to hold the hay in position for engagement by the picker mechanism, said shank being doubled upon itself to form an eye, a bolt engaging said eye to secure the tooth to the rake-frame, and a looped keeper secured to the frame and engaging an intermediate part of the shank, substantially as specied.

5. As a new article of manufacture, a raketooth constructed from a single blank of wire bent upon itself at an intermediate point to form a double shank 92 and a loop or eye 95, a downwardly and forwardly curved tongue, a coil interposed between the shank and said tongue, and an upstanding forwardly-concaved guide 96, and a spring-coil interposed between the lower end of said guide and the shank, said spring-coils being arranged coaxially, substantially as speciiied.

6. In a hay-loader, the combination with a supporting framework having groundwheels, and a rake mechanism, of a pickercylinder comprising heads adapted to receive motion from the ground-wheels, and pickershafts connecting said heads and having spindles mounted for partial rotation in the heads, and toothed body portions yieldingly connected to the spindles and adapted to move radially, means for maintaining said toothed body portions of the picker-shafts in their normal or operative positions, and a carrier traversing and adapted to receive motion from the picker-cylinder, substantially as specified.

7. In a hay-loader, the combination with a supporting framework having groundwheels, and a rake mechanism, of a pickercylinder adapted to receive rotary motion from the ground wheels and comprising heads, an d picker-shafts connecting the heads, the picker-shafts having spindles mounted for partial rotation in the heads and provided with crank-arms, and toothed body portions mounted to slide upon the crank-arms, means for normally holding the toothed portions of the picker-shafts in their operative positions, cam-guides arranged in operative relation with winged extremities of the spindles, and a carrier traversing and adapted to receive motion from the picker-cylinder, substantially as specified.

AS. In a hay-loader, the combination with a supporting framework having groundwheels, and a rake mechanism, of a pickercylinder having heads adapted to receive motion from the ground-wheels, and pickershafts connecting said heads, the pickershafts comprising spindles mounted for partial rotation in the heads and provided with winged extensions, crank-arms carried respectively by the spindles, guide-stems arranged parallel with said crank-arms, toothed body portions mounted at their extremities to slide upon the crank-arms and having perforations to receive said stems, and springs coiled upon the stems to normally hold the toothed body portions of the picker-shafts in their operative positions, and a carrier traversing and adapted to receive motion from the picker-cylinder,substantially as specified.

9. In a hay-loader, the combination with a supporting-framework having ground-wheels at its rear end, rake mechanisnma pickercylinder adapted to receive motion from the ground-wheels, and a carrier traversing and receiving motion from the picker-cylinder, of a standard mounted to slide in a socket arranged adjacent to4 the front end of said framework and adapted to rest at its lower end upon the ground to support said front end of the framework, coupling devices arranged adjacent to said standard to connect the supporting-framework to a vehicle, and means for elevating the front end of the framework when the lower end of the standard is in contact with the ground, the same consisting of a cable fastened at one end to the framework, extending around guide-pulleys arranged respectively upon the standard and upon the framework, and a windlass having a drum to which the other end of the cable is attached, substantially as specified.

l0. In a hay-loader, the combination with a supporting-framework having ground-wheels at its rear end, rake mechanism, a pickercylinder adapted to receive motion from the ground-wheels, and a carrier traversing and receiving motion from the picker-cylinder, of a standard mounted to slide in a socket ar- IOO IIO

IIS

ranged adjacent to the front end of said framework and adapted to rest at its lower end upon the ground to support said front end of the framework, coupling devices arranged adjacent to said standard to connect the supporting-fra1nework to a vehicle, means for elevating the front end of the framework when the lower end of the standard is in contact with the ground, and locking devices to hold the front end of the framework in its elevated position, the saine consisting of a spring actuated latch mounted upon the Standard, and an operating-lever flexibly connected with said latch and arranged in operative relation with a stud or projection, substantially as specified.

ll. In a hay-loader, the combination of a horizontal frame having parallel side bars 5, forwardlyconvergent braces S secured at their rear ends to the side bars, socket-plates connecting the contiguous front ends of said braces, means for supporting the front end of the horizontal frame, a main shaft having groundwheels for supporting the rear end of the horizontal frame, a carrier-frame secured at its lower rear end to the parallel side bars and supported at its front end by braces 25 secured at their lower ends to the socketplates by which the front ends of the braces S are connected, a picker-cylinder carried by the main shaft, a carrier traversing the carrier-frame and receiving motion from the picker-cylinder, a transverse rod 45 connecting the side bars 5 contiguous to the plane of the lower or inoperative side of the carrier, a guide 42 attached at its lower rear end to said transverse rod and adapted to support the lower or inoperative side of the carrier, and a rod 48 secured at its lower end to the socket-plates and supporting the front end of the guide, substantially as specified.

12. A hay-rake havinga frame constructed of terminal and intermediate sections, terminal supporting-wheels on the outer ends of the terminal sections, a single supportingwheel at the center of the intermediate section, and rake-teeth upon each terminal section and upon each side ot the plane of the wheel on the intermediate section, Vsubstantially as specified. l

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as in y own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

SAMUEL FERGUSON.

IVitn csses:

H. 1I. Sums, J. II. Siccnns. 

